Combined table lock and opener.



G. T. BUDDLE.

COMBINED TABLE LOCK AND OPENER.

APPLICATION FIL ED JAN. I5, 1916.

Patented Nov. 20, 1917.

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Inventor Witnesses Attorneys mzwW GEORGE\T. BUDDLE, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

COMBINED TABLE LOCK AND OPENER.

' remove.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov; 20, 1917.

Application filed January 15, 1916. Serial No. 72,292.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE T. BUDDLE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of lllinois, have invented a new and useful Combined Table Lock and Opener, ofwhich the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a device for opening and closing the opposed main sections of the top of an extension table and for locking said sections together when the table is closed, one of the objects of the invention being to provide a simplified form of lock and 0 erating means which can be applied to a ta le top, which can be operated readily, and which occupies but a very small space under the table.

With the foregoing and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds,the invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts .and in the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed can be made within the scope of what is'claimed, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

In the accompanying drawings the preferred form of the invention has been shown.

In said drawings Figure 1 is a bottom plan view of a portion of the top of an extension table and showing the combined lock and opener applied thereto.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the device, the adjacent portions of the table top being shown in section, the relative positions of the parts when the table sections are pushed apart being indicated by dotted lines.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the operating lever and its suppporting bracket, a portion of the bail member being shown by dotted lines.

Referring to the figures by characters of reference A and B designate the two main sections of the top of an extension table.

The device constituting the present invention consists of two units, one unit being attached to the bottom of one section while the other unit is attached to the bottom of the other section. The units consist of an elongated bail 1 preferably formed of heavy which are forced into the bottom of the section B. V The bail is held to said sections by staples 3 straddling the same, If desired,

crimps 4: may be formed in the sides of the.

bail adjacent the staples 3 thus to increase the flexibility of the bail.

The bail 1 is adapted to project beyond the edge of the section B and under the section A when the two sections are close t0- gether or in contact. Secured to the bottom of the section A is the other unit of the device. This second unit includes an angular bracket 5 the base of which is fastened by screws or the like to the bottom of the section A. This bracket has a depending w ng cut away to form a cam dge 7 terminating in a stop shoulder 8, A pivot pin or stud 9 is carried by the wing 6 and mounted thereon is a disk 10 and an actuating lever 11. This actuating lever has a bayonet slot 12 therein and which extends across the peripheral portion of the disk 10. That edge of the wing 6 nearest the section B of the table top is inclined as at 13 so as to lead into or merge into the lowest portion of the from the pivot member'9, which is its normal pos1t1on,the sections A and B can be moved toward each other so as to come into contact: During this movement the elongated bail 1, which is normally positioned close to the bottom of the section A when the two sections are adjacent each other, will come against the inclined edge 13 of wing 6 and be deflected downwardly until it ultimately enters the open end of the slot 12. Continued movement of the sections A and B toward each other will result in the intermediate portion of the bail pressing against the wall of the slot 12 and swinging lever 11 about its pivot so that thebail will thus move back of the wing 6 and assume a position within the slot 12 and back of the tongue 14. By then grasping the free end of lever 11 and pressing it upwardly against or toward the bottom of the section 'A, this tongue 11 willpull upon the intermediate portion .of the bail 1 until it brings said portion against the stop shoulder 8. This action will result in exerting a final pull through the bail 1 upon the section B so that the two sections A and B will be drawn tightly together. By reversing the move- .ment of lever 11, the wall of slot 12 will thrust against the intermediate portion of the bail 1 and swing said bail downwardly and along the cam edge 7 until the lever hangs substantially vertical. This will press the sections A and B apart whereupon by pulling section B away from section A or Vice versa, the intermediate portion of the bail will withdraw freely from the open end of the slot 12.

It will be seen that by providing a struc ture such as herein described it becomes unnecessary to utilize any supplemental means for shifting the unit or section B upwardly and downwardly into or out of engagement with the element on the other section A. Furthermore the structure of the device is greatly simplified, and the device is easily operated, can be readily applied, and does not take up any objectionable amount of space under the table.

The disk 10 rotates freely on the pivot member 9 and thus constitutes an anti-friction element during the movement of the bail under the action of lever 11, thus reducing to the minimum wear upon the bail where it engages back of the wing 6.

By providing the crimp i, the bail 1 is capable of a slight extension thus to provide for any necessary elongation of the bail should the edges of the sections A. and B come together before lever 11 has completed its movement toward the section A.

W l'iat is claimed is 1. The combination with relatively movable table sections, of a spring bail fixedly secured to one of the sections and normally held by its fastening means close to one face of the second section, a shifting element connected to and movable relative to said second section, and means fixed *elative to said second section for engaging and flexing the bail and guiding it into engagement with the shifting element during the relative movement of the sections.

:2. The combination with relatively movable table sections, of a spring unit secured to one of the sections, fastening means holding said unit normally positioned close to one face of the second section, a deflecting element connected to the secondsection and including a cam edge, a shifting member pivotally connected to said element and hav ing a slot provided with an open end and forming a tongue,- said shifting member, when in its normal position having the tongue thereof retracted from the cam edge, said tongue being adapted gradually to project beyond the cam edge during the movement of the shifting member out of its noreaner/a mal position, said spring unit being shiftable against the deflector and into the slot during the relative movement of the table sections.

3. The combination with relatively movable table sections, of a wing extending from one of the sections and having a deflecting edge merging into a cam edge, a shifting the table sections are moved toward each other.

a. The combination with relatively movable table sections, of a wing extending from one of the sections and having a deflecting edge merging into a cam edge, a shifting lever pivotally mounted upon the wing and having a slot provided with an open end and forming a tongue, said tongue being disposed back of the cam edge when the lever is in one position and being projected beyond the cam edge when the lever is in another position, a. spring bail secured at one end to the other section and normally maintained by its fastening means close to one face of the section to which the wing is secured, said bail being shiftable against the deflecting edge and into the slot when the table sections are moved toward each other thereby to shift the lever out of its normal position and project the tongue beyond the cam edge.

The combination with relatively movable table sections, of a wing extending from one of the sections and having a deflecting edge merging into a cam edge, a shifting lever pivotally mounted upon the wing and having a slot provided with an open end and forming a tongue, said tongue being disposed back of the cam edge when the lever is in one position and being projected beyond the cam edge when the lever is in another position, a spring bail secured at one end to the other "section and normally maintained by its fastening means close to one face of the sectionto which the wing is secured, said bail being shiftable against the deflecting edge and into the slot when the table sections are moved toward each other thereby to shift the lever out of its normal position and project the tongue beyond the cam edge, and an anti-friction disk concentric with the pivot of the lever and adapted to be engaged by the bail.

6. The combination with relatively movable table sections, of a member extending from and fixed to one of the sections and having a deflecting surface merging into a cam face, a shifting lever pivotally mounted upon said member and having a tongue disposed back of the cam face When the lever is in one position and projecting beyond said cam face when the lever is in another position, and a bail secured to the other section and normally maintained close to one face of the section to which the mem Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

her is secured, said bail being shiftable 7 against the deflecting surface and into engagement With the tongue When the table sections are moved toward eachother.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto aflixed my signature in the presence of tWo Witnesses.

V GEORGE T. BUDDLE.

Witnesses:

N. N. LYCHE, S. E. KLAFTER.

Washington, D. C. 

